Auguries of Innocence
by It's Light Not Jogan
Summary: Semi-AU, due to TDA teasers being the only things I know about future books. It's the future generation's time to shine, between finding parabatai, dealing with life at the Shadowhunters Academy and overall teenage years taking their toll on every poor soul destined to go through the suffering of being a teenager. M/M, F/F, anything else you'd want in a fanfic. T for safety.
1. Hold Infinity at the palm of your hand

**A/N:** This is a semi-AU. Which means this is a future generation and TDA has happened partially (I really like Mark and seeing the teasers to Lady Midnight, I think it's great that he's "back in society" - bargain chip or not - and I want him in the story but since TDA won't come out till March, this is based on the teasers) and completely ignoring TWP, even though I think it's so cool to have a Herondale that isn't Jace.

Also, spoilers to anyone who isn't up with Shadowhunter Academy - this has fairly heavy usage of the name Lovelace when referring to Simon/Sizzy, there will be cameos and Max "Blueberry" Lightwood-Bane is a part of this future generation. And by "cameos" I also mean the ghosts of George, Jessie and Will. And maybe Matthew and James.

A rundown of the kids-

* Sizzy had Nate and Jessamine, with two years and a half between them. And I totally didn't intend on have a Nate Lovelace after what happened in TID. But it happened, because Nathaniel is a good Jewish name, and I do believe Elaine will want an active part in her grandchildren's lives. Jess found her parabatai at thirteen and Nate has no parabatai as far as I'm concerned (I might as well be wrong about this). And yes, Jess is named after her distant, not-really-related ancestor Jessamine Lovelace.  
* Malec have Max, who is obviously canon after Born to Endless Night, and Rafe, who is canon after Lady Midnight, and when Max was four they contemplated having another child, so they went through surrogacy with Clary agreeing to be their surrogate (because of Alec's concerns about having a Shadowhunter child with a mundane) and then they had Ivy, who should've made his debut in Gold and Grey but I decided against it. So his life will be described here instead.  
* Clace... Ugh, this is a long story. Well, they had twins. Ella Cecily and Tobias Owen, who are about Nate's age. And had Tessa choose their names, for the sake of keeping up Herondale legacy. After Ivy, they decided to take a break, and then when Jess turned two years old, Clary got pregnant by accident. The boy's name is William James. After him they decided to call it off, no more kids, since Clary suffered complications with William, and they really have no more kids. But seeing as Jace is the head of the New York Institute after Maryse, they also have to handle a lot of other people and it's straining. I would know. I deal with four kids every day (three are grown-up babies, one is an actual toddler).

After TDA will come out I'll contemplate the others' kids. This is what I have so far. I also have to think up Jon and Marisol's, since they're my Shadowhunter Academy OTP.

 **Update:** I have discovered Rafe, who is mentioned at Lady Midnight but no more than that, but I still had to work with him (I'll explain everything in the third installment of this). His best friend, Aiko, is a son of Apollo. The reason for this is a mix-up I'm making in the Rafe-centric part of this story. This does not mean this story is a crossover. Just had to mention this fact.

* * *

"I'm starting to think your uncle Simon suggested we send you to a kindergarten as a joke."

"You don't say, Magnus."

"Oh, come on, Alec, wouldn't it be nice for Max to be around kids his age?"

"You said the same thing about Rafael. His only friend is Aiko Gonzales, and we're not sure what he is. Could be a demon for all we know."

"But isn't it nice that he has a friend his own age?"

Max was silently digging a hole in his mac and cheese while his dads were fighting. He didn't like it when they were fighting, but he understood it was about him and he knew that most kids his age, when faced with their parents fighting, wouldn't. After deciding he had finally lost all appetite, he started flicking his fingers, causing things like glitter and smoke come out. Once or twice he had a petal come out.

"Magnus, can we please not fight about the matter during dinner? We've been through this enough-"

"Daddy, look, I made a lily!" He held up the small flower to Alec's eyes. "You see? Papa taught me."

"That's lovely, Blueberry." Max looked proud as Alec ruffled his blue hair. "But I remember telling your papa to not teach you magic at this age."

"It's harmless!"

"You're over four hundred years old and yet I still feel like the adult here. Explain that to me, Magnus Bane."

"Papa, I made a lily." Max turned to Magnus, who took the flower and made a whole show with it.

For his age, Max Michael Lightwood-Bane was a strange kid. And not because he was a warlock, with blue hair and skin that made him attract attention from mundanes when he wasn't glamoured. Max was not a typical five-year old in the means that he was only falling asleep to the words of poets like John Keats and William Blake, he was thinking up and asking existential questions that not even his papa could think of (with his few centuries of being alive) and he wasn't as hyperactive as boys his age were. He was hyperactive, but in mind. Other than that, and various other things about him, he was pretty much a normal kid. Alec and Magnus had had their battles over his upbringing, as well as other matters, but all in all, they were very proud parents.

"You need to say something," he suddenly said. "Is my new little brother not coming home with us next week? Is he?"

The Shadowhunter and the warlock exchanged looks. "No, we don't have anything important to say," Magnus said, frowning. "Why do you think we do?"

"Because you bicker like an old married couple." Aunt Izzy taught him this one. He heard his parents laughing and returned to playing with magic.

* * *

Every Lightwood, Herondale, Fairchild, Lovelace and some of the Blackthorns and Carstairs were there earlier to see new baby Ivy. Max didn't like it when there were lots of people. Everyone got to hold his new baby brother before him, even Rafe - who wasn't even home and was at a sleepover with Aiko - and that was a bad thing in his book. He actually tried to hit Julian and screamed "this is my brother, not yours" when Julian was on the sofa with Emma and Aunt Clary, who held Ivy. But no one paid him any attention. He silently decided that he hates baby showers. And he didn't want to go to them again. The only one he was at before this one was to his cousin Nate's last year, but he didn't remember it. And he thinks he was at Tobias and Ella's, but that was even before Nate's, so he isn't sure.

After everyone left Ivy was still awake, so Alec brought him to Max. The little boy tried to move as little as possible when he was handed the baby, and he did that cradling thing Clary and Izzy did. "Am I holding okay?"

"You're holding great," Alec told him. "Support his head. Just move your hand a litt- no, the other hand. Move it a little… Yeah, like that." Ivy raised a hand and pulled on Max's hair.

"And he's really going to be my brother?"

"Definitely."

When Ivy fell asleep, Max went to prepare to sleep – and since he showered this morning Dad let him not shower at night. So he brushed his teeth and went to his room. And it took a long time before his dads came to tuck him in. So he read a book. After going through all of the Julia Donaldson books Uncle Simon gave him, he started them all over again. And again. Until both his dads came to say goodnight. First Magnus, who had something to attend to – and besides, it was Alec's turn tonight. And then Alec came.

Max saw his dad take the huge book that was a collection of William Blake's poetry. Who lived a very long time ago. Like, really, when his Aunt Tessa and Uncle Jem were still as young as Alec. Or, well, around then. Alec opened the book and asked "so where were we?" Max simply pointed out the page of "Auguries of Innocence". And Alec just passed through the many, many pages.

Max started dousing off at the lines "Some are born to sweet delight; some are born to endless night." So Alec closed the book and left.

"What was I born to?"

The Shadowhunter turned on his heels to face the sleepy child. "Isn't that clear? Sweet delight, of course."

"Oh. Okay. Good night."

And Max fell asleep. Until three a.m., that is, when he woke up to ask Magnus the exact lyrics to Auguries of Innocence for the fifteenth time this week.

* * *

To see a World in a Grain of Sand  
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower  
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand  
And Eternity in an hour

Every Night and every Morn  
Some to Misery are Born  
Every Morn and every Night  
Some are Born to sweet delight  
Some are Born to sweet delight  
Some are Born to Endless Night

\- William Blake, Auguries of Innocence


	2. A Truth that's told with bad intent

Jessie was perfecting her sport stacking. She was currently standing at four seconds and eighty-two for a cycle, which would be considered a world record if she was allowed to actually compete, but she wasn't due to being a Shadowhunter. No mundane knew of her existence – aside for maybe her grandma Elaine and Aunt Rebecca and Becca's husband and kids. But that was okay, because they were family. And they didn't even know about the existence of Shadowhunters.

Mom used to call her an "excessive hugger". Jess considered herself a pacifist, thus not wanting to take part in anything even remotely related to violence, but that was her legacy. Generations upon generations of Lightwoods, Lovelaces and Truebloods – as well as others along the line – were true fighters, but it turned out that namesakes ended up being pretty similar. Just like Aunt Jessamine said, Nate turned out to be as sadistic as her ex-husband was and Jessie grew to be, according to the ghost of Will Herondale, stubborn and proud just like Jessamine herself. They did differ in quite a lot, but the feisty, stubborn thing was there. She wasn't the family's "excessive hugger" for that reason – it was because she refused to act in missions.

Research, sure. Jess could very easily bury herself in books and conjure up a million and one solutions to a problem. Fighting, however, was a different thing. So when asked to take part in a mission, she usually refused. And then when the adults got mad at her she took a break in her room, only to quickly return downstairs and hug them, begging for forgiveness.

"Jessamine Lovelace, come here right now!"

"But I'm stacking!"

She packed her cups and mat and turned to the black sediment at the bottom of her mug. She hated it when small particles of tea got out of the teabag and gathered at the bottom of the mug.

"I'm not asking you if you want it or not, you will come down, right now!" When that didn't happen, Isabelle Lovelace came in, grabbing her by the arm and dragging her out.

"Mom, you're hurting me!"

"If that's what I need to do to get you out of your room, I'll do it."

"Did you ever stop to think that this may be abuse that you're inflicting onto me?" And they're back at the abuse-route. "You're my mother, you can't hurt me!"

"How many times do we have to go over this, Jessamine…? You and your ideas."

Isabelle left her at the library all alone, so she screamed "you could've told me you needed me at the library!"

"Jessa, this is a library! You can't scream here."

Tobias was the only one who called her Jessa. It was usually Jessie, Jess or her full name. And in rare cases she was "Jessamine Rebecca Lovelace". But not with Tobias. No matter how mad she made him, he always called her Jessa.

"Sorry!" She smiled an awkward smile, accompanied by a frown, and went in the voice's direction. There were Tobias, Ella and Ella's _parabatai_ , Romeo Cartwright-Garza. "Why am I here again?"

"Because of a search," Ella tried her nicest. "You're our baby-archivist."

"It's a search after a person, not research," Romeo muttered.

"So what? It's still-"

"Those two, just like anyone else in this institute, have failed in locating a runaway faerie who has committed several crimes against mundanes and now we need to find her," Tobias said over the two. "And before you start, yes, it has to do with your Sight, and yes, I asked Ivy and Nate if either of them wants to do this with me, and they both refused. My parents will never let me take Will on such a mission. Your stacking can wait."

Jess huffed. "Fine. But it can't take long. I need to catch up on reading."

* * *

Ness was singing Michael Jackson to herself as she ran from authorities all over again. She didn't see what was wrong with her sleeping on the street and stealing from kitchens if no one caught her. The people in black tried catching her all the time. She was doing well so far, but it was going to be a while before they, too, were gone. Never the same people, never the same spot.

She stopped behind a pizza joint to catch her breath when she heard "you idiot!" That sound was alarming. She knew it usually meant they were onto her, but then she heard "there's no way even a faerie can get through this distance in less than a day!"

So she wanted to run again, but the sound of a gun startled her. "Over there, Tobias. I can see her." So she kept running.

A boy in black caught up with her pretty quickly, a girl catching up to them in time. The golden boy was wielding blades. The brown-eyed brunette girl had a few guns and daggers strapped to her waist. Ness was trapped. They didn't look that much older than her, but she was still scared. She was not armored in any means, but this girl – who seemed to actually be younger than her – was handling firearm and looked like a professional. That made Ness sick.

"She's not a faerie," the girl said suddenly.

"Oh really? What a surprise," Ness had to reply.

"No one talked to you. Do not speak unless-"

"She's like Mark and Helen. I just know it, don't question me, Tobias."

The boy – Tobias – held a blade to Ness. "If you're wrong about this, no stacking for you for three months," he said, looking at the girl. "Either you come with us or we have this conversation here."

"Do I really have a choice?"

"It's getting boring and predictable. Can I go home and continue reading?"

"Worst crime, Jessa. Absolutely not." The girl – Jessa? – huffed and frowned. "Don't give me that face! By the Angel, you're impossible."

"So let's bring her home and have your mom interrogate her! Threatening her is obviously not doing us any good, now does it?"

Ness saw the boy sigh in defeat. "Alright. We'll have it your way. And you-" he put a hand on Ness' shoulder- "you're coming with us."

"Predictable!"

"For all things that are holy, Jessa, stop it!"

* * *

She was banned from stacking for a few months. Tobias told Simon and Isabelle everything and the latter took away her mat, cups and timer, and locked them up in a place where Jess couldn't find them. She cried about it for a few hours, then dropped on her bed and grunted, face on the pillow. Then she started looking for it.

"Jessie, we're going to start the interrogation, we need you to write everything down." It was Clary. She was okay in Jess' books when it came to post-missions, especially when said post-missions had to do with her stacking. So Jess went after her.

"Name – Ness Bellefleur, age 14, born in…" Jess was just copying what she heard. She was also doodling at the edges of the paper. So this girl, who was two years older than her, was half-faerie and running away because her mom abandoned her at eight. She could think of much worse.

"Excuse me? Much worse?" So she said it out loud… Damn. "What is much worse than what?"

"Many things are worse than being abandoned at eight." The light-haired, dark-skinned girl eyed her with a threat. "My aunt Jessamine was questioned to no end, tortured and reduced to the level of self-loathing and hatred because she fell in love with and married a guy who just used her as a toy. And I know people who are just like you, half-faerie, Helen and Mark, but because they're half-faerie Helen was exiled and Mark was refused to return to society because they're a 'threat' to us Shadowhunters. How is abandonment, which led to pretty good survival skills, worse than exile and torture? If anything, it's the exact same level of awful! I personally think-"

"That's enough, Jessamine." Clary sent her a stare. "We have to continue."

* * *

At the end, Ness was allowed to leave. But this was an institute for people like her, like the redhead said. And there was proper food ("but you can never ask my mom to cook or even your amazing stomach, that I'm sure have survived trash-food, won't be able to stand it") and hygiene, things she didn't have for a long time. So she let herself stay. And besides, the company was hilarious.

From what she saw, there were a few kids in the institute. Most notably the Herondales and the Lovelaces. The former were Tobias, his twin sister Ella and their brother Will. The latter were Jessa – now she knew her name was Jessamine – and her brother Nate. Ness was not expecting the golden boy and his dark-haired sister to be such anime fans, seeing how skilled they were with weaponry – she had found herself around them handling weapons several times. Or the little dark girl to be such a loner. Well, she did expect that, seeing how she behaved. But she didn't see how she could be such a loner with all those people around who loved her. There were even a guy named Alec and his son Ivy (who will name their _son_ Ivy? She had to ask them). Alec and Ivy were there a lot but she never saw anyone who might be Ivy's mother, so she had even more questions to ask.

She decided to ask those questions one day.

"Excuse me, Ella?" The brunette turned around from the blooming bush she was attending to in the greenhouse. "There are a few questions I need to ask."

"Shoot."

"Okay, how do I put this…" Ness took a deep breath. "Who exactly are Alec and Ivy? Is Alec married, or does he have a girlfriend, or what? And-"

"Woah, stop there, girl. Alec with a woman?" Ella actually snorted, and said snort turned to actual laughter. Then she stopped sharply. "Oh, right. You're new. Alec isn't married, but he's engaged. Our rules don't allow Shadowhunter-Downworlder marriage as far as Shadowhunter marriage goes, they will have to go through a different ceremony if they wished to get married, but Alec's fiancé wants to wait with it. His name is Magnus and he's over four centuries old. And they have other kids, Rafe and Max. Max is nineteen and a Harvard graduate. Early admission at fifteen, all under glamour. Rafe is twenty-one, has his best friend who is a demigod, Angel knows what that means, he lives in France and works in research of other forms of supernatural beings with that best friend. Um, what else, what else… Right. Ivy is the result of my mother agreeing to be surrogate. Anything else?"

"Yeah. What kind of a name is Ivy for a boy?"

"I guess Max wanted to be creative when he was four."

"Oh. Okay. And… I think I have one last question."

"All ears here."

"What's the thing with Jessamine? She's just-"

Ella sighed and rolled her eyes. "She's just weird. She has to work on it by herself, but she's weird. A mix of genius and ADD or something like that. Don't bother her and she won't be a challenge." Ness nodded in understanding. "Now, I have a question. Is my dad trying to enroll you in Shadowhunter Academy?" The girl nodded again. "Good. It will do you good, get you to meet other people like us. Get you used to the Shadowhunter life."

"And I can't do it here?"

Ella turned back to her flowers. "It's recommended that you won't. Max will teach there this year. Trust me, it's best for you to be at his hands than ours for the time being."

Ness shortly thanked Ella for the information and went back. Now life was less confusing.

* * *

Before Ness left for the academy, Jess asked Tobias to pass her a note. The two grew closer as time passed. They even found mutual interest in cartoon weapons, like the Light Cannon from Steven Universe and the S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R., which – even Tobias had to admit – was cool. He was the victim of home-made S.P.L.A.N.K.E.R. attacks every now and then.

Jess looked hopefully through her bedroom window, waiting for Ness to read the note and signal. She got a thumbs-up. That was a moment to celebrate. So she had to plan how to ask her parents to let her go to London and meet up with the family.

The note said "If you want to be my parabatai when you're back, give me a thumbs up. And even if not, write to me! –Jessa."

* * *

 **A/N:** And there is Jess' _parabatai_. Ness. She was originally a Greek half-blood, but I said "to Hell with it, I can do worse". This story is the first in the collection because I had to get it out of the way to get to the other really cool stories. (Yeah. Sure. Really cool.) What happened between the story about Max and this is not that important, mainly kids growing up and causing trouble. As kids do.

Now. Jessa is me. I am an ADD genius and trust me when I say it's hard, and I'm not excusing everyone like me, I'm doing this for myself. I can't do anything when it comes to school. I spent a whole day listening to audio books when I was supposed to sit through lit., which is one of my favorite subjects. Jessa isn't this kind of person, but she does have her own issues. And I, too, am an excessive hugger like her.

And Ella's _parabatai_ is the result of ( **Spoilers** ) me wanting Jarisol kids! I love Jarisol. I almost cried when Jon showed his love to Marisol! I also almost cried when George died, but I almost cry every time. Never cry. Just, almost. Romeo is the worst of Jarisol, but he loves Ella enough to be subtle around her. And she's much less subtle than she normally is around him. And I'll cover their story in a later installment.


	3. Raises from Hell a Human Soul

**A/N:** I only recently discovered the existence of Rafe Lightwood-Bane, therefore I will edit the other two chapters to fit the canon better. I know it's unnecessary, but so long as he exists, I'll go around my own story to fit it to the canon. Sticking to canon is a thing I want to be good at and do every time I'm writing fanfiction (whether it's Perfect, which doesn't necessarily stick to the canon as much as it should but it's an AU so you get me, or this or even some of my original stories which have characters I adapted from other stories) because it's something I feel that is important.

And sure, I do mix it up a lot in this chapter, but Aiko is someone I thought of today because I wanted to write a Rafe-centric fic and he needed a best friend.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't speak Spanish. In case you see Spanish and want to comment on that, it is translated online (simply because it would be idiotic to call up my aunt at ten pm to ask her to translate something for me, and yes, my aunt speaks about five languages). Don't think I don't know there are mistakes, because I do. (There's also the possibility of no Spanish...)

And to organize this, Rafe is sixteen, going to seventeen in this story (and Robert kind of forced Alec to send him to Shadowhunter Academy). Which means Max is fourteen and about to go to Harvard (as I said, early admission under glamour) and Ivy is nine or ten. Look at the previous chapters to organize this further.

* * *

Ivy's grip on Max's wrist was awfully tight, and then Magnus went in the room. The two boys were under the watch of Aunt Izzy and they didn't expect their Papa to be back so soon from that meeting in Seoul (after telling the people in North Korea that Kim Jong-il did not, in fact, invent the hamburger, which resulted in his ban from the DPRK), but he was there, so Ivy ran to him. Dragging his brother across the floor.

"Why so soon, Magnus?"

And then Alec came in, carrying the unconscious body of Rafael. Max's excitement mellowed down. Rafe was placed on the couch and Magnus immediately went to work, Isabelle behind him, nudging.

"Daddy, what happened to Rafe?" Ivy asked. "Is he gonna be okay? I don't want him to die, it would be unfair and not fun."

"He's not going to die, Ivy." Alec ruffled his son's hair, then turned to his sister. "Some mundane boys decided to light up fireworks before their Ascension, they were trying one out, Rafe was in the area and... And it wasn't pretty. Poor Vivianne didn't know what to do with the boys."

Then Ivy and Max were shoved to their rooms as the adults were taking care of Rafe. And Ivy was growing impatient. Kind of. What does a nine-and-a-half-year old do when no one is around? His dad gave him his phone and left him, just like that! It was awfully boring. And he already completed Undertale with every ending and he didn't want to play it again. So he just stumped around the room angrily, hoping for something to happen.

And then his computer lit up and the sounds of a Skype call came through. He wasn't really allowed to answer Skype calls without Rafe or Max, but he wasn't allowed to leave the room either, and it was Grandma Maryse. Ivy loved his Grandma Maryse. So he answered.

"Nana!" He screamed. "Something's wrong with Rafe."

"What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know but Daddy and Papa won't let me be around him and I'm locked in my room and I'm bored. Can you come over here? Please?"

* * *

In the end Rafe was okay. He went through surgery, got a prosthetic leg and went on to live with Aiko and Xiomara Gonzales for a while. Just until Alec stopped fighting with Robert. And that was pretty nice. He could use some quiet after being in the Academy and Alicante for the last two years, having no contact with his best friend whatsoever. And he did not plan to go back there.

"I'm off to camp in two weeks." Aiko did a death-drop and looked up at the sky. Why did he always had to do that, Rafe could only guess. "Sorry to break that to you. But, happy days, I'm going to NYC soon after that summer. So we'll have even _less_ time!"

"So why happy days?"

"It just seemed to fit. You know, some things just seem to fit. Like me calling you gringo."

"Sí, pero es obvio que olvide que usted es el gringo. Eres americano, soy argentino."

"I'm not fucking white!"

"But you are American, born in the United States, you can't argue with the facts." Aiko groaned and hit Rafe on his shoulder. "What's with your name anyway?"

"I told you that ages ago. My mom used to date this guy who told her he always wanted a kid called Haiku, then she got pregnant, he ran away and she chose the name Aiko because Haiku is a shitty name, and then it turned out to be Apollo. You know this story!"

And then Bonetrousle started playing.

"What-"

"I'm so sorry! It's Angel. I really have to answer this call..." So Aiko jumped up and left Rafe on the grass. The Argentine could hear his friend screaming away as if he was in love or something.

Or maybe he really was, and Rafael was just not picking it up.

It was a nice day in late May and things were going nicely. He was still getting used to his prosthetic, which Ivy had dubbed "Just like Amy Purdy's", and the other injuries were getting along nicely. Other than that he had no care in the world. Minor ones, sure, but major things like fighting in a war or things like that... They weren't his to worry about. When he's older, he decided, he'll be just like Marisol Rojas-Garza. She went through a surgery to fix a slipped disc a few weeks after Evita was born, so she couldn't exactly be the fierce fighter she always was, but Rafe knew she still had the fire and the will to keep going and make herself a name in the Shadowhunter community and in their history. He wanted the same thing - to keep going, keep the flame lit and fueled, and to never give up even though he's now considered handicapped.

He probably fell asleep on the grass because he woke up at sunset, Aiko shaking him awake. "Dude, we really need to go."

"Why...?"

"I told Angel we're having an Undertale tournament tonight and you can't stay here by yourself."

"Okay, okay. I'm coming..."

* * *

Rafael was sitting between Alec and Robert, and he hated this position. He had a headache, phantom pain in the form of the need to scratch below his knee and he really needed to sleep.

"He will go back and complete his education!" Robert slammed his fist on the table they were sitting at. Max, in the corner, jumped and tried to hide. Rafe felt for him.

"I am not sending him back, and you can forget about Ivy training there-"

"Can I propose a solution for the better of all of us?" Both his dad and grandfather went silent. "Aiko's going to college in September-"

"Who is Aiko? Is he that demon-child?"

"He's a son of a Greek god, for some odd reason. Rafael, continue."

"Okay. So he's going to college, but he still has time to cancel his tuition there. I don't think I made sense by saying this but the thing is, I'm a Shadowhunter with a prosthetic. It's not even what Aunt Marisol has going on. I'd like to take Aiko and his boyfriend, Angel, and go live in Paris. We'll rent an apartment together, we'll research the underworld together, give you in Idris a better understanding of the other species or races that exist in this world. I don't want to fight, but I do want to help the community in giving the world a better picture of where we stand right now, and not when the Shadowhunter race was created in the eleventh century. Do you accept this offer?"

Robert coughed and rubbed his hands together. Alec seemed quite shocked and just couldn't do a thing. Rafe felt like he won this thing already.

"Alright. But I want to add to your little crusade."

"You may, Grandfather."

"First, you will answer to me whenever I ask something of you."

Rafe was sorry he agreed to that.

* * *

 **A/N 2:** Now, about Aiko and Angel - Angel is a student in Ilvermorny and there was an accident where Aiko accidentally found out about the magical world and he was held hostage there until they figured out what it was that he wanted, and when he was released Angel gave him his phone number in hopes that they will have Undertale tournaments. I know it's not a multiplayer game, but I love this game a lot, and you can have a tournament with every game, in my mind.

And I sorted out the birth years! Rafe and Max were born in 2007 and 2009, respectively, seeing as they are canon. Ivy was born in 2013. Nate and the twins (Tobias and Ella) were born in 2012, Romeo in 2011, Jess in 2015 (which means Ness was born in 2013), William in 2017 and Evita in 2016. Now, considering that Angel is a year older than Aiko and Rafe, he is quite possibly already an Ilvermorny alum by the time he and Aiko start dating. Just so you'd know.

And please, I'm going to ask this very nicely - if you see a mistake and want to fix it, do it nicely. I know that there are mistakes but just like everyone else on this site, I am a person behind a computer. I don't take well to flaming and it would be nice if you'd be nice. Comments are always cool.


	4. Puts all Heaven in a Rage

Ella didn't want to go to the Academy. She didn't tell anyone why, but she just didn't want to go.

"Ells, it's not that horrible! You'll get to use your spear a lot, isn't that great?"

"You know she's scared of losing a leg like Rafe did."

She knew Tobias was going to love the Academy. Ella just _knew_ it. That's why she didn't want to go, not because she was scared of losing a leg (the thought of this possibility made her happy, she assumed that having a prosthetic was actually going to make her more badass rather than sad and lifeless). Ella hated Tobias to the point of her psychologist calling their relationship "verging on toxic" - he made her feel anxious, inadequate... She wanted to beat him up at every opportunity. He was clearly their parents' son, with golden blond hair and green eyes. She had black, curly hair and blue eyes and no one could tell where those genetics came from. He was also the better child, always successful, always loved. Whenever Ella tried to do something she was told to shut up and go to her room.

And that was why she dreaded going to the Academy. She was going to hang out with her brother all the time.

"Clary, Izz, while it seems like you enjoy tormenting my daughter very much, can I talk to her alone?" Jace asked as he came to Ella's room. "I want to tell her a few things before sending her off." The two left without a fight and the blonde sat on his daughter's bed.

"What do you want, Dad?"

"I wanted to give you a farewell gift and talk to you."

Ella threw the sweatshirt she was fiddling with on her bag and sat next to Jace. "Talk. You want to do it. Be quick."

"Hey, I'm your father. Be respectful."

"I'm sorry..."

He held out a closed hand and opened it to reveal the clockwork angel. "I know I shouldn't be doing this," he started. "I know that by doing this I'm probably breaking a few rules. But I asked your grandmothers, both Jocelyn and Tessa, and they agree that it's best that you wear this instead of us having it kept in display."

"Are you trying to say that it will make me more confident?" She tried to be sarcastic. It just came out mean.

"Ella Cecily Fairchild-Herondale, I warn you. You're hurting me." Ella pulled her shoulders as Jace put the necklace on her. "We all know you're plenty confident. I want you to wear it so that you'll remember where your strength is from."

"It sounds stupid."

"But it's not. I do believe I'm the only one in this place who understands what it's like. Remember, I didn't know who I really was for ages."

"You even believed Mom is your sister," Ella muttered and went to look in her mirror.

"And she technically is my former adoptive sister. Ells, I know you can't really stand Tobias right now, but I assure you. It will get better as you'll grow up. For now you need to remember that you need to channel energy from a positive place that brings you joy, not from your hatred towards your brother."

"How do you know? You never had siblings."

"I had Alec, Izzy and Max and that was enough for me." Jace stood up to leave. "I love you, Heron. I trust you. Even more than I trust your brother." Then he was really at the door.

"Why? Why trust me more than Tobias?"

"Because even though he's more successful in some fields, you're made of hero material. And I should know. I'm the best Shadowhunter of my generation." Father and daughter laughed as Jace went back to kiss Ella's head before really leaving.

And leaving Ella packing alone. And she hated packing.

* * *

As expected, Tobias was the reason Ella hated the Academy. They were only there for just a few weeks and he was already everyone's favorite, making Ella disappear further into the shadows. And she chose to keep it that way. While he was making friends, she was practicing her French; as he was practicing his knife-skills and being praised by everyone, she was throwing lances and spears at trees in a hidden spot in the forest. No one knew she was missing and she didn't care that no one knew she was missing.

She just started wondering why sixteen was seize and twenty was vingt but seventeen, eighteen and nineteen all started with dix- as someone found her hiding spot.

"Reading in the dark is very bad for you," that guy said.

"Actually, while reading in the dark can strain the eyes quicker and probably cause problems with sight, it can't hurt me as much as glasses can hurt me."

"I know that fact. That's why I said it was bad for you." He sat next to her. "What are you reading anyway?"

"Essays my mom sent me." She closed the binder she was reading in. "She thinks I should learn a second language. To her, if my brother speaks three languages, why shouldn't I speak at least two?"

"I totally get that. Both my parents are bilingual and they expect me and my siblings to speak English as well as their languages." He held out a hand. "Romeo Cartwright Rojas Garza. Idiotic time to introduce myself, but I should at least try."

"Ella Cecily Fairchild Herondale." She shook his hand. "Pleasure to meet you. So, your parents are bilingual?"

"My mom speaks Spanish as her first language and my dad speaks French as a second. Why?"

"Fantastic! Can you explain to me why the one-word names for numbers stop at sixteen until twenty?"

"Ugh... what?"

"French. You said your dad speaks French."

"But I don't speak French."

She groaned in frustration. "I just don't get it! Look." She opened the binder. "Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, treize, quatorze, quinze, seize. And then dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf. Vingt. Couldn't the French just make up words for seventeen, eighteen and nineteen instead of this bullshit?"

"I still don't know French," Romeo laughed. "But I agree. I'll ask my dad. Do not fear, Romeo is here."

"So I should fear actually because if you want to say that by that I'm your Juliet, I should be terrified."

"I love the way your mind works, Ella Cecily Fairchild Herondale."

"Thank you, Romeo Cartwright Rojas Garza."

"Adrian. Before the excuse me, this is my middle name. Since I know yours I think you should know mine. And no, I don't have a crazy name like Pablo Diego Jose Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno Maria de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santisima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso."

"First of all, you're crazy. Even if you learned this through Epic Rap Battles of History. Second, thank you, Romeo Adrian Cartwright Rojas Garza."

"You are very welcome."

* * *

 _A year later_

Tobias was jealous of Ella. He hated being jealous of his sister. So he happened to be good at school and in fighting but it didn't mean in the least that he felt superior to her, as he knew she felt. He always knew what she felt. Being her twin kind of did it to him.

He wasn't jealous of her for being better, he was jealous of her for being a better human being.

"Tobias, is something wrong?" Asked Lenore, his girlfriend of a few months. "I don't like it when you're spacing out."

Lenore was a mundane and an only child. She was the last person to understand.

"Do you want me to get you anything?"

"Can you just leave me alone?"

She pulled her shoulders, rolled her eyes and left. He was never like that. He was always sweet, mild, overachieving, _boring_ Tobias. Ella wasn't boring. She was weird, yes, and her ideas were somewhat impractical. But she was never boring. She was never like Tobias.

He took his time to approach his mother, who came to the Academy for the week since they asked her to teach. She was in a private room and he was told where it was. After knocking on the door, however, he felt like he just had to leave.

Clary opened the door. She was in the middle of getting dressed. "Tobias. What's wrong, honey?"

"I don't know." It was the first time in his life he didn't know something.

"So why aren't you getting ready instead of worrying about things you do or don't know?"

"Because I need to talk to you but I don't know about what."

"Well, can we talk later, honey?" She ruffled his hair. "Your sister's ceremony is today, you know. I don't want to be late and neither do you." He turned to leave, disappointed and hurt, when she talked again. "You know I'd listen to you any other day. It's just that... you don't get to have your _parabatai_ ceremony any day you'd like."

Later that day, when he saw Ella in her pretty white dress with that Hispanic boy, whatshisface, Romeo in fancy clothes of his own. Tobias hated looking at them. He loved his sister, and he assumed Romeo was alright - his parents were Uncle Simon's friends, after all, so he must be alright - but he just hated looking at them because he _knew_ , he just knew he'd never have that.

He'd never have a parabatai.

Seeing his sister happy with her new mate-for-life made him sad. But he smoothed it out and went to hug her. It was her time to shine, after all. Not everything had to be about him.

* * *

 **A/N:** I know this story is very strange in the way it's been written, but honestly, this is how it came out. I was not rushing anything or things of the sort. And I am trying my hardest, but if this is what comes of a writer's block I've had for a very long time now, this is what you get.

I don't think it's bad, actually. Yes, it's weird, but so is Ella and Ro's friendship. And Ella and Tobias' twin relationship.

And there will be more of this, trust me.


	5. The wanton Boy that kills the Fly

"Hey Ro?" The blue-eyed girl lay down on the grass, next to her friend.

"Hey Ells?"

"Do you sometimes think of the future?"

The dark-haired boy rolls on his side to look at his friend. "Do you?"

"Sometimes." The blue-eyed girl turns to look in her friend's eyes. "But not mine."

"So whose?"

"I don't know. My great-uncle Will's. The Lovelaces'." The boy clears his throat. "You know, once Uncle Simon told me that when George Lovelace was still alive, he told him that -"

"'Well, I'm a Lovelace'," Romeo says. "'My family quit Shadowhunting due to laziness in the 1700s.' Yes. I know."

"What would've happened if they hadn't?" Ella looks away. "They could've been great. Our world could've been much better. The original Jessamine was... Is, a great person."

"Isn't she dead already?"

"I know the ghosts of the London institute. I have talked to the original Jessie Lovelace." Romeo laughs. "And yeah, she is a great person. A bit frazzled and out of place, like our own Jessie, but she's very nice."

"You should introduce us sometime. I have wondered what it's like, slee-"

"Don't even think about it. You can't sleep with a ghost. So don't even think about it."

"I usually think about my brother. Chris." There's an eerie silence in the garden. "My parents wanted to send him to the Scholomance."

"So why didn't they?"

"He doesn't want to."

"And what about your future? Do you ever think about your future?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know, if you'll ever get married, how many children you'll have, are we going to stay friends forever..."

"That's nonsense, Ella! We're _parabatai_. We're going to stay together forever."

"Well, what about the other things then?"

"I don't know... I probably won't marry. I don't think the married life is for me."

"But children?"

"You'll have yours and I'll be their cool Uncle Romeo."

"Now you're not going to be their cool Uncle Romeo."

"Why not?"

"Just for calling yourself the cool uncle of my future children. I have decided that Nate is going to be the cool uncle."

"Woman, you wound me!"

"Oh, man up and take it like the Shadowhunter you are! What a pussy."

The garden goes quiet again. The only sounds are bird chirps and the occasional car passing by. Then Romeo sighs heavily and sits up.

"What would you name your children?"

"Well, you know, I want to have children in the future, but not in this reality." Ella huffs. "You get me, don't you? I don't want my future children to grow up in a reality like this. I want them to know that there are great heroes who did lots for them. People like.. Like my ancestors. James Herondale, Matthew Fairchild, Christopher Lightwood... Even my aunts and uncles, you know. I want them to know that you're not born a hero."

"Woman, I asked what will you name them. Not to give me the most elaborate explanation ever as to why you won't have children soon."

"What's the difference?"

"Just give me names!"

"Berry and Hollywood. Could be shortened to Holly."

"You're a GBBO addict."

"Yes, I am. Good for you that you noticed."

There is a cat meowing somewhere. Ella jumps from her spot on the grass, going to look for the cat. He is under a bench, fending a piece of something - possibly pastrami? - from other cats.

"Ro, come here right now." Ella starts chasing off the other cats. The cat she's set on protecting is tiny and multicolored. She tries to reach out to him. "Would you like to be called Klan, little kitty?"

"Ells, leave this cat alone. He's probably -"

"I know you watch lots of Adam Ruins Everything, Romeo, but look at him! He's so cute."

"She."

"He."

"This cat is a calico. It's a girl."

"Some calicos are boys, Romeo. And this one is called Klan. With a K."

"Why Klan?"

"Because Jem has Church and Magnus has Chairman Meow. If I'm going to have a cat, he or she must have a properly fitting name. One that fits our set of names of people and institutions who have ruined people's lives. Klan."

The fluffy kitten makes his way to rub around Ella's leg. She almost falls over from the surprise.

Romeo raises his hands in defeat. "Alright, then. Welcome to the family, Klan." He looks in Ella's eyes. "But you're letting me call him Kupa Keep as a nickname."

"Of course! So long as his name is Klan." Ella picks up the cat. "Do you think my aunt Izz cooked today?"

"Heron, no human or cat would ever eat her food."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Do we have any food fit for kittens, then? And we'll need to get him neutered and vaccinated and -"

"Woah, slow there. Would your parents even agree to you having a cat?"

"Sure. My parents are great!" The orange glow of the setting sun starts burning Ella's eyes. She pets her new cat and starts walking back to the institute. "And besides, if I can't keep him, I'm sure Alec and Magnus would do it for me."

"You are one impossible lady, Ella Fairchild-Herondale."

"Thank you, Romeo Cartwright-Rojas-Garza."

Their way to the institute is quiet. Klan meows softly and Ella hums a song, but no major conversation happens. That is, until they get close to the institute. Ella stops and bites her lip in worry. Romeo stops on his tracks and turns around when he realizes she doesn't follow him.

"What now, Heron?"

"I'm scared."

"Oh, so now you're scared?!"

"Can you tell my parents I got a cat for me? Pretty please?" She tries her puppy-eyes. Romeo just rolls his eyes.

"No. We're doing this together."

* * *

"This cat is the devil."

"Oh, don't say it like that! He's so cute."

Klan walks all over Ella's stomach as he crosses her room. She groans in pain. "No, he is definitely the devil. All wrapped up in adorable, fluffy Norwegian forest cat fur, but the devil." Klan meows, as if to approve her claim.

"Come on, you're making a scene out of nothing!" Romeo takes a wooden stick with a toy mouse tied to it and starts moving it around. Klan stops his current mission to chase the toy mouse.

"I blame you. Cool Uncle Romeo, my ass."

"Didn't you say you didn't want me to be cool Uncle Romeo?"

"I hate both of you!" Ella turns to bury her face in the rug. Romeo pets the cat.

"Mommy didn't mean it," he says to the cat. "She's just very angry that you like me better."

"I still hate both of you."

"And we love you, dear."

Klan meows in approval, going back to his original mission. The room goes quiet, save for some quiet laughter.

"By the way," Romeo says. "Who would like me better, Berry or Holly?"

Ella groans. "I don't know, how about you ask them when they're born?"

"I will."

* * *

 **A/N:** Short story I had in mind for a while. Just those two, doing nothing important, talking about the future. The bit about heroism is something I thought about a long time ago and joked about with a friend. So no, no real point of this story. Just two parabatai having fun with a cat.


End file.
